Tennessee is famous for the Great Smoky Mountains, Graceland, Dollywood, and Jack Danielโs Whiskey. Music legends such as Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, and Jerry Lee Lewis made their first records at Sun Studios in Memphis. And treats like cotton candy, Mountain Dew, and Moon Pies all came from the Volunteer Stateโand have kept dentists busy ever since. But Tennessee also faces a serious oral health challenge: about 1 in 5 adults aged 65 and older have lost all their teeth due to advanced decay or gum disease. Luckily, mini implants have become a valuable resource for replacing missing teeth. At the Center for Cosmetic Dentistry, weโre helping patients in Cleveland and the surrounding areas restore their smiles and reverse this trend with mini implant dentistry.
Why Get Mini Implants for Teeth?
If youโre missing teeth, the impact goes beyond your appearance. Gaps can make you feel self-conscious about your smile, but they can also cause your remaining teeth to shift, throwing off your bite. That can make eating challenging for anyone. But for those without any teeth, enjoying mealtimes can become a daily challenge. Without the ability to eat a healthy and diverse diet, overall health and well-being can quickly decline.
On top of all that, you may also struggle with the impact of resorption. Resorption refers to the deterioration of the jawbone. Itโs an eventual result of toothlessness, but why does resorption happen?
Normally, the roots of your teeth transmit chewing forces to the jawbone. These forces stimulate the bone to rebuild and stay healthy. Without them, the jawbone begins to break down, resulting in symptoms such as:
- Altered facial appearance
- Bite changes
- Chewing issues
- Speaking difficulties
- Headaches
- Jaw pain
- Wrinkles around the mouth
Unfortunately, traditional dentures and bridges sit on top of your teeth or gums, so they donโt replace your tooth roots. Mini implants, on the other hand, replace everything thatโs missing, from the crown to the root. That means they improve long-term jaw health while addressing the practical and cosmetic consequences of tooth loss.
The Mini Implant Process
Mini implants are thin titanium posts that we insert through your gums and into your jawbone. We then place a restoration on top of the implant, giving you the stable bite and attractive smile youโve been missing.
Hereโs what our mini implant process looks like:
- Free consultation: We discuss your concerns and assess whether mini dental implants are right for you. We use wraparound 3D imaging to assess the health and size of your jawbone. These precise images also help us determine where to place your implants. We also take impressions of your mouth in order to create your custom dental restoration.
- Placement procedure: After applying a local anesthetic, we make a tiny pilot hole in your gums. Then, we insert the implants into your jawbone through the pilot hole. We place as many implants as needed to support your restoration.
- Temporary restoration placement: We can then attach a temporary prosthetic to the other end of the implants. This step allows you to go home with a new smile that same day.
- Permanent restoration attachment: After a few weeks of healing, we attach a custom restoration to your implants.
The big takeaway is this: Even if youโve been missing teeth for years, we can restore your dental health with a simple, minimally invasive procedure.
Mini Implant Solutions for Any Stage of Tooth Loss
The mini implant procedure is essentially the same whether youโre replacing a single tooth or a whole mouthโs worth. We offer various mini implant-based replacement options.
If youโre missing just one tooth or a few teeth, we may recommend:
- Bridges: Bridges replace one or more side-by-side teeth. Traditionally, they snap over the two natural teeth at each end of a gap. An implant-supported bridge, however, snaps onto titanium posts, making it more stable than a traditional bridge.
- Crowns: A traditional crown normally fits over a broken tooth. But implant-supported crowns replace a single missing tooth and offer better function and durability than traditional bridges.
For full-mouth tooth replacement, we offer a number of options:
- Snap-in dentures: This removable prosthetic, also known as an implant overdenture, โsnapsโ onto a set of 4-8 mini implants. You can remove it yourself for cleaning, just like traditional dentures.
- Fixed on 6: This denture system utilizes 6-10 mini dental implants, offering far greater stability than traditional dentures. We remove the zirconia roundhouse bridge only during cleanings.
- Cemented roundhouse bridge: This is a zirconia bridge that you never take out. We cement it on top of 10-12 mini dental implants, providing maximum stability and the most natural appearance.
During your consultation, weโll discuss all your tooth replacement options at length.
Benefits of Mini Implants for Teeth
Mini implants solve many problems associated with traditional prosthetics. For instance, many people find traditional dental prosthetics uncomfortable, inconvenient, or insufficient in terms of bite strength. Dentures, in particular, are prone to slipping and irritation.
But there are several other benefits of mini implants, especially when compared to traditional dental implants. Mini implants are:
- Less invasive: The mini implant procedure doesnโt require gum incisions or stitches.
- Quicker results: While traditional implants require multiple surgical procedures over several months, we can place mini implants in just one visit.
- More affordable: Mini implants are small, and the placement procedure is less involved. Patients also seldom require bone grafts. All of this reduces the cost of mini implants.
- More comfortable: Patients report only mild discomfort following the procedure and during the healing phase.
Considering all the advantages, itโs no wonder more and more people are opting for mini implant-supported restorations over traditional dental prosthetics.
Contact Us To Learn What We Can Do for Your Smile
Tennessee is famous for its music, mountains, and memorable landmarks. Our goal is to help make sure high rates of tooth loss arenโt part of that legacy. With mini implants, you can protect your health, enjoy your favorite foods again, and feel confident in your smile. At the Center for Cosmetic Dentistry, weโre here to make that possible. Contact us today to schedule your free consultation and take the next step toward living and smiling with mini implants for missing teeth.
